Seven in ten carts walk.Find the one driver that's bleeding you.
Most cart abandonment isn't lost intent — it's fixable friction at the checkout itself. This gate scores your flow against the documented causes and names the single worst one to fix first, with two dominant drivers that fail the whole checkout on their own.
The checkout is where the revenue you paid to acquire quietly walks out.
of loaded carts are abandoned (Baymard, 2026) — the single largest pool of recoverable revenue you already paid to acquire.
abandon over unexpected costs surfacing at checkout — the #1 documented driver, and one of this gate's two dispositive signals.
abandon when forced to create an account — the #2 driver, and the gate's second dispositive signal.
A headline like "70% abandonment" is too broad to act on. The fixable share traces to a short list of friction points — and two of them, surprise costs and forced accounts, dominate. This gate isolates which one is costing you most, on each flow, so the fix is a decision and not a guess.
Score one flow's seven signals and watch the dominant driver gate it.
Live gate · one checkout flow
Flow verdict
HEMORRHAGING
weakest 1 · mean 1.86
fix first: Total-cost transparency
Dominant-driver gate fired on Total-cost transparency. Even a partial failure there loses the bulk of abandoners, so the flow reads HEMORRHAGING regardless of how strong everything else is.
Show the full total — shipping, tax, fees — from the cart, never at the last step.
Grades a flow you describe — no store connection, no payments, scores no people. No conversion or recovery rate is guaranteed.
The same verdict at the command line, across every flow at once.
A zero-dependency Python engine grades every checkout flow offline and prints a per-flow read plus the portfolio rollup. The workbook reproduces every number it returns — three-way identical by construction.
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CHECKOUT FRICTION & ABANDONMENT EXPOSURE GATE :: RedHub AI :: CFA-079
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Flows graded: 5 Exposure rate (share HEMORRHAGING): 60%
PORTFOLIO: PORTFOLIO HEMORRHAGING (worst: Main store checkout)
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[HEMORRHAGING] Main store checkout <- DOMINANT-DRIVER GATE (Total-cost transparency)
hidden_cost=1 forced_account=2 checkout_length=2 trust_signals=2 payment_options=2 mobile_readiness=2 delivery_clarity=2
min=1 mean=1.86 fix first: Total-cost transparency
-> Show the full total — shipping, tax, fees — from the cart, never at the last step.
[LEAKING] Mobile express lane
hidden_cost=2 forced_account=2 checkout_length=1 trust_signals=1 payment_options=1 mobile_readiness=1 delivery_clarity=1
min=1 mean=1.29 fix first: Checkout simplicity
-> Cut steps and fields to the minimum; add autofill and a progress indicator.
[HEMORRHAGING] Wholesale portal
hidden_cost=2 forced_account=0 checkout_length=2 trust_signals=2 payment_options=1 mobile_readiness=2 delivery_clarity=2
min=0 mean=1.57 fix first: Guest checkout offered
-> Offer prominent guest checkout; move account creation to after purchase.
[SMOOTH] Subscription signup
hidden_cost=2 forced_account=2 checkout_length=2 trust_signals=2 payment_options=2 mobile_readiness=2 delivery_clarity=2
min=2 mean=2.00 fix first: Total-cost transparency
-> Show the full total — shipping, tax, fees — from the cart, never at the last step.
[HEMORRHAGING] Marketplace guest flow
hidden_cost=2 forced_account=2 checkout_length=0 trust_signals=1 payment_options=2 mobile_readiness=1 delivery_clarity=2
min=0 mean=1.43 fix first: Checkout simplicity
-> Cut steps and fields to the minimum; add autofill and a progress indicator.
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Grades a flow you describe; no store connection, no payments, scores no people.
No conversion or recovery rate guaranteed. Not legal or financial advice.
==========================================================================Three rules keep the read honest.
MIN-as-headline
A flow is graded by its weakest signal, never the flattering average — because shoppers abandon at the single worst point of friction. Weakest 2 is smooth, 1 is leaking, 0 is hemorrhaging.
Two dispositive gates
Surprise total cost and forced account creation are the two biggest documented causes. Either one — even a partial failure — forces HEMORRHAGING on its own, because a strong score elsewhere can't offset the bulk of abandoners it loses.
Your flow, no multiplier
The verdict comes from your own description of the flow. No invented recovery rate, no industry lift, no store connection. It grades the checkout and names the fix — it scores the flow, never a person.
A diagnosis of your flow, not a connection and not a cure.
What it is
- A deterministic read of a checkout flow you describe — same verdict every time.
- A per-flow SMOOTH / LEAKING / HEMORRHAGING call with a portfolio rollup.
- Two dispositive gates on the dominant documented abandonment drivers.
- The fix-first driver for each flow, with a fix note attached.
What it isn't
- Not a store connection — it reads nothing live and processes no payments.
- Not a recovery tool — it diagnoses; you make the fix and re-score.
- Not a guaranteed conversion or recovery rate — no invented lift.
- It grades the flow, never a person, and isn't legal or financial advice.
Scope: this grades a checkout flow you describe and returns a conversion-UX judgment. It scores the flow, not people, and is not legal or financial advice. Confirm tax, fee-disclosure, and consent requirements for your market with your own advisor.
Anyone who owns a checkout and a conversion number.
- Ecommerce founders — who feel traffic is fine but sales lag, and need to know where the cart leaks.
- CRO & growth teams — making the financial case for a checkout redesign with a concrete dominant-driver finding.
- Agencies — auditing a client's checkout and routing the fix to a clear priority order.
- Solo & SMB stores — one product or a booking flow; the gap between added cart and completed sale is still real money.
Grade the whole path to purchase, page by page.
Straight answers before you buy.
Stop losing the sale at the last step.
Find the driver and fix it.
One purchase, lifetime access, 12 months of updates. $79, once.
Scope: grades a checkout flow you describe and returns a conversion-UX judgment. It scores the flow, not people, and is not legal or financial advice.
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